Friday, May 05, 2006

Ray Comfort Concedes the Banana Argument

Yes, and the other big news is, I think I like the man. He has class, and a whole lot of humility.

On Friday, Francois, Aaron and I spoke with Ray, and went through the usual Christian nonsense, leading up to the big question about THE BANANA.

You have to hear it to believe it, but we had a great conversation. My favorite part came at the very end, courtesy of Francois. When you hear it, don`t forget that the argument in question (the one about truth telling), was mine.

Well, I don't hate Jesus at all. In fact, I love Jesus. It's his fan club I can't stand!

Besides, even if you don't believe he was the son of god (which, as an agnostic, I choose to reserve judgement on), that doesn't mean he didn't have many worthwhile things to say. The same can be said of Mohammed, Lao Tzu, or Buddha.

Well, you could probably say ANY crazed cult leader had SOMETHING worthwhile to say. Does that justify the lies, the claiming that one is God, and the part about burning forever in eternal torment? I think not.

I never said that it did. All I said is that it's entirely possible to take the good things they said and learn from them. Just because part of a car's broken doesn't mean you throw the whole thing away--much better to salvage the parts you can save first.

After all, that's why we've developed critical thought. We have the power to analyze what these people said, and then decide for ourselves what's worth agreeing with and what should be ignored. We don't have to follow it blindly, nor do we have to ignore it entirely.

I tend to get very worried indeed when people take any extreme point of view. Not that I'm saying you are--I don't even know you. But I do know that if you choose to say "well, some of what Jesus said was lies, therefore everything he said was lies" is like the creationists who try to say "well, some of the theory of evolution is flawed, therefore it's all flawed."

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHY YOU HAVE SUCH A DEEP HATE FOR JESUS. IF YOU WERE HONEST WITH YOURSELF YOU WOULD REALIZE THAT YOUR HATE COMES FROM A DEEP ROOTED FEAR. YOU ARE REALLY AFRAID OF WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU WHEN YOU DIE. THERE IS NO EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT EVOLUTION, SO YOU CHOOSE TO BELIEVE WHAT YOU ARE TOLD THROUGH FAITH ALONE. SO YOU LASH OUT AT THOSE WHO HAVE FAITH IN JESUS DUE TO YOUR OWN FEAR DUE TO THE LACK OF EVIDENCE IN YOUR FAITH.

Dear dmcph (dumb man can't please her)I didn't wake up one morning and discover that I have a deep hate for Jesus. I don't have to go to a psychologist or a therapist and have her help me find this out. Frankly, I have no idea who you're talking about. Whoever this "Jesus" is, you seem to be a pretty big fan. I have my ideas about who this guy is, but I couldn't say with certainty. As for this Jesus in the bible, he's a monster. A big Halloween monster, so there you go.I am afraid to die, because I really like life. I have a pretty good life, even though I don't feel like I have a lot of money, or good looks, or the kinds of things I'm supposed to want to have. But as far as not knowing what happens, well, that seems to be your problem, Dumb Man Can't Please Her. You're the one who believes in monsters, not me. I don't know why you go on about evolution. Why are you going on about evolution? Do you mean that if it turns out that evolution is not true, that I'll go to hell? I'm afraid to say, Dumb guy, that the horror is just beginning for you. For, if evolution is not true, it's just as possible that the Muslims are right. You're toast, dude.Anyway, I'm sorry you feel "lashed out at." Although, I'm not the one yelling (he's got his Caps lock on). It seems that people are so connected to their club, that if someone criticizes the manifesto of said club, they feel personally attacked. They should not feel that way. Will Dumb Man Can't Please Her feel personally attacked if I said that canned beer is cheap and bad-tasting? He shouldn't. he really shouldn't.